Color-coded shrink wrapped closure system

ABSTRACT

A packaging system for improved management of cap inventory when different beverages, such as different types of milk (skim, 1%, 2% and whole) or water (spring, distilled, fortified, mineral etc.) are bottled in the same bottling lines at various facilities. The system includes maintaining a supply of standard caps, which may be free of colorants or pigments, and a supplies of reels of different colored (or differently printed) shrink sleeve material. The different types of beverage are bottled in containers that have a single standard cap and standard uniform bottles, and the different contents of said bottles are differentiated from one another by the application of colored (or distinctively printed) shrink sleeves or bands. The cap and/or the bottle neck are adapted to be engaged by the shrink band in a way that protects the bottle from being tampered with, and when threaded caps are used, helps prevent the inadvertent loosening of the caps during in shipment.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to closure devices, and in particular, relates toa shrink-wrapped and injection molded tamper resistant bottle cap andneck for bottles which hold liquids, such as milk, water or juice, and asystem for providing color-coded shrink-wrapped injection molded tamperresistant bottle cap and neck for bottles.

Injection molded caps for blow molded bottles (made of HDPE—high densitypolyethylene) have been used for many years. In addition, shrinkwrapping bottle cap and necks has been used for many years. Generally,two types of bottle caps are available, push-on caps and thread-on caps.Push-on caps are installed by aligning the cap with the opening of abottle and simply applying an axial force to the top of the cap.Thread-on caps generally require that the cap and bottle be aligned andthat a rotational force be applied to the cap. In some cases, threadedcaps, if carefully designed in conjunction with the bottle to which itis applied, can be made so that the rotational force required to installthe cap is minimized or even eliminated. These kinds of injection moldedcaps are often made with polypropylene (both high and low density).Typically, caps on bottles sold to consumers include an integrallyformed (i.e., injection molded) tamper-evident feature such as a anintegrally molded ratchet ring on threaded caps, or one-time-usepull-tab on push-on caps.

A tamper evidencing ratchet ring has internal ratchet teeth thatcooperate with matching teeth formed on the exterior of a bottle neck.When the bottle cap is screwed on the bottle neck, the ratchet teeth ofthe bottle cap ride over the mating ratchet teeth on the bottle neck,thereby enabling the bottle cap to be fully tightened on the bottleneck. However, when a user attempts to unscrew the bottle cap usinglow-to-medium twisting force, the ratchet teeth of the bottle cappositively engage the mating ratchet teeth of the bottle neck, therebypreventing unthreading and unsealing of the cap, unless the ratchet ringhas been separated from the cap with which it was molded. Removal of theratchet ring may occur when high levels of twisting force are applied tothe bottle cap in the direction of unscrewing. The connection betweenthe cap and the ratchet ring may be broken in this way, or by separatelyprying the ring from the cap. A broken connection between the ring andthe cap, or the total absence of the ratchet ring from the bottle cap,serves as visual evidence that the bottle has been opened, and thecontents may be contaminated. Furthermore, other tamper-evident andopening devices of bottle caps include a pull-tab that will create atear in the plastic cap portion that extends over the bottle neck alongthe circumference of the cap, thus allowing the cap to be removed fromthe bottle, and in some cases allowing the torn portion to be removedfrom the cap. In the bottled water industry the pull tab on push-on capsfor 5-gallon containers, for example, is not easily removable from thecap, and only partial tearing of the pull tab allows removal of the capfrom the bottle.

While the combination of a bottle cap with a tamper evidencing ring anda bottle neck with ratchet teeth provides for an acceptabletamper-evident connection and seal, this combination does have itslimitations. On occasion, these ratchet rings remain engaged by theratchet teeth on bottle neck when the bottle is opened. When thecontents of the bottle are poured into another container, the ratchetring may become loose and can fall into the separate container receivingthe contents of the bottle. Furthermore, on smaller or single servingcontainers, the ratchet ring can become a nuisance as a consumer takes asip directly from the bottle. If the ring has remained on the containerafter it has been opened, the ring may fall into the consumer's face ormouth as he or she is taking a sip.

Another way of providing evidence of tampering is to apply a shrinkwrapped band at the interface between a cap and a bottle. This techniqueis commonly used on glass bottles containing liquids, such as juice, orother food product. See AXON® Corporation—Styrotech® of Raleigh, N.C.,for an example of such shrink wrapping systems athttp://www.axoncorp.com/heatshrink/, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,165,215,entitled Machine for applying tamper evident bands to container.Commonly, the shrink sleeve or band is transparent. This allows thecolor and decorative features of the closure to be easily seen byconsumers.

In the field of bottling and selling milk, bottlers have traditionallyused different colored caps to differentiate one kind of milk fromanother. For example, red caps may be used to designate whole milk,light blue for skim milk, yellow for 1%, etc. Colored caps are also usedto designate different kinds of juices or different flavors ofbeverages. Coordinating cap color with the contents of the containers,particularly when multiple kinds of beverage are bottled at a singlefacility or with a single bottling line, is no small task. In milkbottling facilities, a single filling line may be required to fillcontainers with four different kinds of milk. When changeovers from onekind of mild to another occur, all of the caps of one color in thecapping portion of the filling line (e.g., feeder bowls and cap feedingchutes) must be removed and replaced with another color. In some casesthe hoppers from which caps are fed are difficult to access and empty.These changeovers can require considerable time and effort toaccomplish, and may be required to be done every day, or even multipletimes a day.

Other problems associated with capping facilities using the typicalcapping system that relies upon cap color to differentiate the kind ofmilk in a container, include the fact that ample supplies of each colorof cap must be kept on hand. This requires significant storage space andlead times in ordering different colored caps for the inventory. Usingcaps of several different colors complicates transportation andwarehousing, and can result in delays in bottling operations.

Some larger retail grocery stores and large milk producers bottle milkat several sites, and service those sites from distribution centers,primarily from the standpoint of supplying inventory of caps and othersupplies need in the bottling process. Capping facilities have forseveral years used different colored caps to differentiate products(e.g., skim, 1%, 2% and whole milk). This method of differentiationtypically requires the bottler and/or the distribution center to storelarge amounts of colored caps—a 3 to 5 week supply on hand to facilitatechange-over from one kind of milk to another on short notice. In suchoperations, colored caps may be ordered by a distribution center, thenstored at the distribution center for later delivery to any one ofseveral bottling facilities serviced by the distribution center. When aretailer decides what the “special” will be for a particular milk sale,i.e., skim, whole milk, 1% or 2%, it must then inform the bottlingfacility, which then must order the corresponding color caps from thedistribution center and have them shipped to the bottling facility.Typically, a bottling/capping facility will order more caps of differentcolors and store them on site so they do not have to deal, on shortnotice, with a cap manufacturer in order to get the caps it need for aparticular sale. The storage of caps will often take up large portion offloor space at the bottling facilities, as well as at the distributioncenter.

In order to eliminate many of the problems associated with cappingsystems now in place, the inventions disclosed and claimed herein, in amilk bottling application, allows a bottler to use caps of a singlecolor, e.g., white or pigment-free, for all kind of milk, and thenrelies upon shrink sleeves or bands of different colors placed over thecap and neck of a bottle to differentiate one kind of milk from another.The cap and neck of a bottle are configured in such a way as to allow amechanical interference between the shrink sleeve and both the cap andthe bottle neck to help prevent the cap from backing off of a tightenedposition during shipment. By placing shrink sleeves of different colorson the bottle neck and by using cap of one standard color, a line changewill entail a simple change in the color of shrink wrap is used ratherthan unloading and loading different colored caps from the feeder bowlsand capping apparatus within the bottling line. By using differentcolored shrink wrapping sleeves, instead of different colored caps,warehouse and storage space is significantly reduced. The sleeves occupyconsiderably less space than do caps, and transportation costs (e.g.,emergency shipments of colored caps) are diminished as no specialtransportation requirements for caps of a particular color will berequired.

Using color-coded shrink sleeves over the cap and neck of a bottlesignificantly reduces costs associated with storing and disposing oflarge amounts of different colored caps, eliminates the problemassociated with the ratchet ring dropping in milk glasses, reducesinventory space, reduces lead-time on ordering, and the tamper evidentfactor is clearly visual in shrink band. The caps are alsointerchangeable between several bottling facilities that may be servicedby a central distribution center.

The inventions described and claimed herein also have application in thefield of bottled water, such as water that is transported and dispensedfrom inverted large (e.g., 5-gallon and 3-gallon) containers. Consumersof bottled water have great concern about colorants used to give colorto caps on containers of bottled water. Colorants may (or may beperceived to) affect the taste of water, since the plastic of caps for5-gallon water bottles come into prolonged contact with the water thatis stored therein. Yet, since the bottles themselves are reused over andover again the bottles cannot effectively be used for productidentification. Instead, bottlers have traditionally used the cap and alabel on the cap to provide some (albeit limited) productidentification. By using a colored, multi-colored or printed shrinksleeves, instead of colored caps to identify the source of the bottledwater, the bottlers can use caps that have no pigments or colorants.Similarly, when a bottler needs to differentiate one container fromanother (for example a container with a valved cap vs. a container witha standard unvalved cap), the bottler can simply use a shrink sleeve ofone color for bottles with valved caps and a shrink sleeve of anothercolor for bottles with standard unvalved caps. In the case of valvedcaps (which typically have a tamper-evident label covering the valve andat tamper-evident pull tab, the colored shrink sleeve will -provide anadditional layer of security in the form of a third level of tamperevidence.

For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for an improved tamperresistant bottle cap and bottle neck that limits the ability of a personto tamper with the contents of a bottle and provides a system forsealing the bottle cap and neck with a shrink wrap band. Specifically,there is a need for a tamper resistant bottle cap and bottle neck whichwill clearly show any tampering and will eliminate the ratchet ring ofthe previous art.

It is therefore a primary object of the inventions described and claimedherein is to provide an improved tamper resistant bottle cap and bottleneck for use in bottles which hold liquids, such as milk and juice, andto provide a system for providing a shrink wrap band on the bottle neckand cap.

It is a further object of the inventions described and claimed herein toprovide an improved tamper resistant seal between a bottle cap and abottle neck in bottling operations that use the same kinds of containersto ship different products, such as different kinds of milk in 1-galloncontainers.

It is another object of the inventions described and claimed herein toprovide a system for color-coding a cap and bottle neck at abottling/capping facility.

It is yet another object of the inventions described and claimed hereinto provide a bottle neck with an improved durability sealing mechanismduring transport of bottles of milk and juice.

The inventions described and claimed herein are directed to a tamperresistant bottle cap and bottle neck that satisfy the need for a bottleclosure with an improved tamper resistant seal and color-coding system.A bottle closure having the features of the inventions described andclaimed herein broadly comprises a bottle cap and a bottle neck.

The bottle cap of the inventions described and claimed herein includes acircular cover, a wide skirt depending from the periphery of the cover,and a tamper evidencing shrink wrap seal. The skirt of the bottle capincludes an interior surface having threads for retaining the cap to abottle neck and an outer surface having a series of high and low knurlsalong its periphery.

The bottle neck of the inventions described and claimed herein includesan opening at its upper end, a cylindrical exterior surface havingthreads for retaining a bottle cap, a circumferential bumper roll belowthe threads, and a circumferential portion below the bumper roll. Thecircumferential bumper roll has indentations on its underside.

The threads of the bottle cap and the bottle neck of the inventionsdescribed and claimed herein are appropriately dimensioned so as tosealingly engage when the bottle cap is screwed onto the bottle neck.After the bottle cap has been screwed onto the bottle neck, a shrinkwrap band is applied to the bottle cap and bottle neck so as to preventunscrewing of the bottle cap relative to the bottle neck withoutbreaking the sealable connections. The tamper evidencing shrink wrapband of the bottle cap can be color-coded, clear or adapted to receiveprinting. The location of the indentations on the underside of thebumper roll and the knurls provides additional sealing means to theshrink wrap band of the combination of the bottle cap and bottle neck ofthe inventions described and claimed herein. Specifically, when thebottle cap is fully threaded onto bottle neck, the shrink wrap seal ofthe cap completely surrounds the skirt and partial portion of the top ofthe cap, so that it is very difficult to tamper with.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, objects, and advantages of theinventions described and claimed herein will be become better understoodupon consideration of the following detailed description, appendedclaims and accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bottle cap and bottle neck made inaccordance with the inventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 2 is a top view of a bottle cap and bottleneck made in accordancewith the inventions described and claimed herein before placement of theshrink wrap band;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a bottle cap and bottle neck madein accordance with the inventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view taken along line A-A in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a top view of a bottle neck made in accordance with theinventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 6 is a side view of a bottle neck taken along line B-B in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side view of a bottle cap and bottle neck with a shrink wrapseal;

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of the cap, neck and seal of FIG. 7;

FIG. 8 is a top view of a bottle cap and bottle neck with a shrink wrapseal.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of theinventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 9A is a top view of the alternative embodiment of the bottle capand neck in FIG. 9;

FIG. 9B is an enlarged view of the alternative embodiment in FIG. 9taken along line C-C in FIG. 9A;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a third alternative embodiment of theinventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 10A is a top view of the alternative embodiment of the bottle capand neck in FIG. 10;

FIG. 10B is an enlarged view of the alternative embodiment in FIG. 10taken along line D-D in FIG. 10A;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a fourth alternative embodiment of theinventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 11A is a top view of the alternative embodiment of the bottle capand neck in FIG. 11;

FIG. 11B is an enlarged view of the alternative embodiment in FIG. 11taken along line E-E in FIG. 11A;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a fifth alternative embodiment of theinventions described and claimed herein;

FIG. 12A is a top view of the alternative embodiment of the bottle capand neck in FIG. 12;

FIG. 12B is an enlarged view of the alternative embodiment in FIG. 12taken along line F-F in FIG. 12A; and

FIG. 13 is an illustration of a system in accordance with the inventionsdescribed and claimed herein.

It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scaleand that the embodiments are sometimes illustrated by graphic symbols,phantom lines, diagrammatic representations and fragmentary views. Incertain instances, details which are not necessary for an understandingof the inventions described and claimed herein or which render otherdetails difficult to perceive may have been omitted. It should beunderstood, of course, that the inventions described herein are notnecessarily limited to the particular embodiments illustrated herein.

Like reference numerals will be used to refer to like or similar partsfrom Figure to Figure in the following description of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIGS. 1 and 3 generally depict the outside of a bottle cap and bottleneck of the inventions described and claimed herein. FIG. 1 depicts thecap and neck combination in a perspective view, while FIG. 2 illustratesa top view of a cap 11 and bottle neck 24 of the inventions describedand claimed herein before a shrink wrap seal is placed on the bottle capand neck. The cap 11 is comprised of a circular cover 12 and a dependingskirt 14 with alternating high and low knurls 15 and 16, respectively,formed on the outside surface thereof (as shown more clearly in FIG. 4).Four distinct threads 26 are formed on the inside surface of the skirt14.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6 there is shown a bottle, indicatedgenerally at 21, upon which the bottle cap 11 of the inventionsdescribed and claimed herein may be installed. The bottle 21 includes abody 22 and a cylindrical bottle neck 24 which is integral with the body22. The bottle neck 24 has an upper opening 25 and an upper end 23 whichterminates in an inwardly directed circumferential sealing lip 28 withan inner edge 29. The bottle neck 24 also includes four external screwthreads 30 which engage threads 26 of bottle cap 11. The bottle neck 24also includes a circumferential “bumper roll” or transfer ring 32located immediately below the external screw threads 30 on the upper end23 of the neck 24. In prior bottle neck designs, a bumper roll has beenprovided on a bottle neck for manufacturing purposes as it facilitatesgripping the bottle during the loading of the bottle into a shippingcontainer and is typically placed at a lower end 27 of the bottle neck24. However, the bumper roll 32 of the bottle neck 24 of the inventionsdescribed and claimed herein may include additional features to provideeven further advantages. It can be seen from FIGS. 3, 4 and 6 thatbumper roll 32 includes a substantially flat annular top surface 34 andbottom surface 35. Preferably the top surface 34 and bottom surface 35of the bumper roll 32 are parallel to each other and with respect to aplane defined by the opening 25 of the bottle neck 24. Also, it ispreferred that the top surface 34 of the bumper roll 32 is joined to thebottom of the screw threads portion and the bottom surface 35 of thebumper roll 32 is joined to the top of the lower end 27 of the bottleneck 24.

Furthermore, in the preferred embodiment, the bumper roll 32 includesindentations 36 on its bottom surface 35 along the entire length of itsperiphery. As seen in FIG. 4, the indentations 36 are preferably placedalong the bottom surface 35 of the bumper roll 32 every 12° along itscircumferential periphery and are approximately 0.100 in. in width. Theplacement of the indentations 36 on the bottom surface 35 of the bumperroll 32 serves to increase gripping of the shrink wrap band.

The bottle neck 24 also includes a lower end 27 that extends from thebottom surface 35 of bumper roll 32 . As can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 3,the bumper roll 32 is diametrically larger than the screw threadsportion of the neck 24 and the cap 11. The lower end 27 of bottle neck24 is only slightly diametrically larger than the cap 11, but smallerthan the bumper roll 32.

Specifically, in referring to FIGS. 7, 7A and 8, when bottle cap 11 isfully threaded onto bottle neck 24, the lower edge of skirt 14 of cap IIis placed in contact with or closely adjacent to the top surface 34 ofbumper roll 32, and the shrink wrap band 38 is placed around the bottlecap 11 and bottle neck 24 in its fully threaded position. The shrinkwrap band 38 grabs the high and low knurls 15 and 16, respectively, onthe outside surface of the skirt 14 of the cap 11, and shrinks to fit inbetween the alternating high and low knurls, 15 and 16, respectively,and further grabs the indentations 36 on the bottom surface 35 of thebumper roll 32, shrinking to fit into the indentations 36. Theindentations 36 and high and low knurls 15 and 16, respectively, serveto increase resistance and space for the shrink wrap band 38 to seal thebottle cap 11 and neck 24. The knurls and indentations 36 also provide agripping means for the shrink wrap band 38 so that the band 38 does notslip circumferentially around the bottle cap 11 and neck 24. It alsoprovides gripping means to sealingly engage the bottle cap II and neck24 in such resistance that the combination does not allow for tamperingwithout breaking the band 38 and such that the contents of the bottle 21will not spill or leak out of the seal.

The bottle cap 11 of the inventions described and claimed herein ispreferably clear or a solid white color. The shrink wrap band 38 iscolor-coded to correspond to the particular color needed to representthe contents of the liquid within in the bottle 21. For example, theshrink wrap band 38 can be a light blue color to indicate skim milk, ora light brown color to indicate chocolate milk, or a red color, toindicate a particular juice flavor. If multiple bottling lines areoperated in a single facility, all of the beverage lines can use thesame closure, and differentiation of the various beverages can be doneprimarily (or even exclusively) with color coded shrink sleeve material.The color-coding shrink wrap band 38 is provided in the machinery of thebottling/capping facilities and can be changed simply by changing thereel containing the colored shrink wrap material based on the needs atthe time bottling/capping occurs. There is no need to remove caps fromthe feeder bowls typically used in capping operations, since a singlekind of cap is all that is needed. Furthermore, the shrink wrap sleeves38 are provided in the bottling facilities in the manufacturing process.The shrink wrap sleeves 38 are placed in a reel that can contain aplurality of different colored shrink wrap sleeves 38. The reel issimilar to a movie reel and can simply be changed by pulling out onecolor and feeding another colored shrink wrap sleeve 38 into the reel.An example of such shrink wrap sleeve sealing can be found in U.S. Pat.No. 5,165,215. One reel of shrink wrap sleeve material can service asmany as 100,000 containers. Each shrink sleeve needs to be about 25millimeters in axial length. The shrink sleeves 38 can be stored inlarger quantities than different colored caps because the shrink wrapsleeve material comes ready-to use in boxes that are about 13×13×13inches with each. The very compact shrink sleeve material can be reliedupon to take the place of using different colored caps, which are muchmore bulky and space-consuming. This allows a bottler to use a singlecolor of (or colorless) cap. In contrast, about 2000 caps having ratchetrings fit into a typical shipping container. Thus about 50 boxes ofcolor coded caps would be required for 100,000 containers, whereas onlyone 13×13×13 inch box can be used for color coding the same quantity ofcontainers.

FIGS. 9 to 12 illustrate alternative embodiments of the inventionsdescribed and claimed herein. FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment withbumps 40 placed along the outside circumferential periphery of thebumper roll 32 instead of the indentations 36 on the bottom surface 35of the bumper roll 32 of the preferred embodiment. The bumps 40 are0.115 inches in width and spaced with each bump's center point every 10°apart. FIG. 10 illustrates bumps 40 a, similar to those in FIG. 9,however, in this alternative embodiment, the bumps 40 a are placed onthe lower end 27 portion of the bottle neck 24 and have a diameter of0.133 inches. The bumps 40 a are positioned along the circumferentialperiphery of the lower end 27 of the bottle neck 24 with each bump'scenter point spaced every 10° apart. FIG. 11 has protrusions 42extending from the lower end portion 27 of the bottle neck 24 that arelocated directly below the bumper roll 32 where the bottom surface 35 ofthe bumper roll 32 meets the top edge 31 of the lower end portion 27 ofthe bottle neck 24. The protrusions 42 are 0.100 inches in width and arespaced every 15° apart along the circumferential periphery of the lowerend portion 27. FIG. 12 illustrates another alternative embodiment thatincludes thirty-six (i.e. every 10 degrees) vertically oblongindentations 44 on the outermost surface of the bumper roll 32.

The advantages of the system of the inventions described and claimedherein in a large milk bottling operation with multiple bottlingfacilities can be seen in FIG. 13. A centrally located distributioncenter 45 provides transportation and distribution services to aplurality of bottling facilities 46. Since a single standard cap is usedfor all grades of milk (i.e., skim, 1%, 2% and whole milk) the bottlersneed only have one kind of cap on hand. The distribution center 45 maymaintain a backup inventory, but again need only keep inventory of onestandard cap (e.g., white or colorless). Since milk is shippedfrequently from the bottling facilities to the distribution center 45,as milk is picked up by a truck for delivery to a distribution center45, a supply of standard caps can be dropped off at each bottlingfacility 46 as part of regular runs. This eliminates the need for anyspecial or costly transportation costs associated with specially coloredcaps for a particular sale that a retailer wants to have, e.g. a sale onskim milk. The system of the inventions described and claimed herein,eliminates the need for each bottling facility 46 to keep an inventoryof several colors of caps, and avoids a similar problem at thedistribution center 45. Indeed, standard shippers containing thestandard caps used at all facilities can be ordered on a routine basisusing “just-in-time” ordering and delivery, depending only on theoverall volume of milk produced at the group of facilities, regardlessof the kind or grade of milk produced.

In some instances, a bottler may rely entirely on the color-coded shrinksleeve to differentiate the contents of various containers containingdifferent beverages, i.e., it may be possible that no otherparticularized labeling is necessary. However, even when an additionallabel descriptive of the particular contents of the container is applied(e.g., to the side of the container), the color coded shrink sleeve,because of its visibility and prominent location allows the color-codedshrink sleeve to be the primary means for indicating to the consumer thekind of beverage in the container.

An additional benefit to bottlers that comes from the elimination of theratchet ring on present caps is the fact the number of caps that can beshipped in the same size box is increased by approximately 167%, andthere is no danger of a damaged ratchet ring (and consequent loss oftamper evidency), since there is no ratchet ring present in the capwhich are part of the system described herein, and indications oftampering come from the shrink sleeve, instead of the ratchet ring.

The inventions described above with respect to caps used on beveragessuch as milk are also applicable to other bottle cap and neckconfigurations. For example, a color-coded shrink sleeve can be appliedto 5-gallon containers (and containers other capacities having similarneck profiles) in the bottled water industry. The cap 50 in FIGS. 14-16is an example of a valved cap of the kind commonly used on 5-gallonwater bottles. Such bottles are typically made of clear polycarbonate orclear PET plastic (by an injection stretch blow-molding process) and areintended to be re-filled and re-used by water bottling companies. Thecap 50 has a skirt 54 and an inner cap 62. A bead 58 provides the capwith an enlarged OD (outside diameter) at one end (the lower end inFIGS. 14-16. The bead corresponds to a rounded annular upper portion 70(FIG. 16) of the bottle 52 to which the cap is applied. While the capshown in FIGS. 14-16 is a valved cap with a protective label 60, theclosure and color-coded systems of inventions described herein are alsoapplicable to unvalved (or standard) 5-gallon closures, which do nothave an inner cap 62, but may have a label 60. Also common on closuresof the kind used for 5-gallon and other large capacity bottles is theinclusion of a pull tab (not shown) to facilitate the removal of the capwhen it is time to clean and refill the bottle upon return of the bottleto the bottling plant, although some bottlers have automatic capremoving machines or devices which do not rely on a pull tab.

As shown in FIGS. 14-16, a shrink sleeve 56 (about 44 mm in axiallength) is applied to a cap 50 in phases. The first phase, shown in FIG.14, entails the initial application of an unshrunk sleeve 56 a. In FIG.14, a completely un-shrink 56 a about to be placed over the cap 50 inthe direction of the arrow 57. This may be a step that is performed by acap manufacturer before the cap is applied to any bottle. If the capmaker applies the shrink sleeve in advance of the cap being applied to abottle, the cap maker will preferably only partially shrink the sleevesuch that there will be a gap 59 between the partially shrunk sleeve 56b and the skirt 54 of the cap 50. The gap 59 will allow radially outwardflexing of the skirt of the cap as it is forced onto the top of a bottlewithout splitting the shrink sleeve. However, the partial shrinking ofthe sleeve will provide sufficient retention of the sleeve 56 b on thecap 52 so that it may be handled, shipped and fed into a cappingapparatus at the bottling facility.

FIG. 15 shows the partially shrunk sleeve 56 b and the gap 59 around theskirt of the cap. In FIG. 15 the retention of the sleeve 56 b on the cap52 is provided by engagement of partially shrunk areas 66 and 68 withthe bead 58 on the cap 52.

If the combination of a partially shrunk sleeve 56 b and a cap 52, ofthe kind shown in FIG. 15, is provided to a bottler by a cap maker, thebottler will preferably want to complete the shrinking of the sleeve 56b. The step of completing the shrinking of the sleeve to the conditionshown in FIG. 16 will be done by the bottler after the cap has been putonto the container 52. As can be seen in FIG. 16, the fully shrunksleeve 56 c grips and is in substantial contact with the exterior of theskirt 54, and the ends of the sleeve 56 c cover the peripheral edge ofthe label 60.

As an alternative to the situation where the cap, as shown in FIG. 15,comes to the bottler with a shrink sleeve 56 b pre-applied by the capmaker, the bottler may want to do the installation of the shrink sleeveitself. In that case, the bottler will install a shrink sleeveapplication line and a heater to perform the shrinking. In this manner,the intermediate step of partially shrinking the sleeve will beeliminated. There may be some additional capital expenditure required bythe bottler in this case, but it will afford the bottler with a greaterflexibility when it comes to managing inventory, as discussed above inthe case of milk bottling. Water is also marketed in various ways whichmay require differentiation in the same way that skim, 1%, 2% and wholemilk require differentiation. For example, a botter may offer some orall of the following kinds of water: spring water, distilled water,fortified water (i.e., with fluoride), Artesian water, mineral water andbaby water. Using one standard pigment-free cap for all of the types ofwater sold in combination with different colored shrink sleeves willallow the bottler to differentiate its products in a highly visible andcolorful way, while also allowing the bottler to use only one kind ofcap for all of its water products, thus benefiting from the inventorysimplicity described above.

In the bottled water industry, cleanliness and purity (and theappearance thereof) are important features. In dispensers used tosupport and allow extraction of water from inverted 5-gallon (and othersized) containers, valved versions of caps are left on the container toallow inversion without worrying about spillage during the process ofchanging bottles. Thus, valved caps are inserted directly into the unitfrom which water is eventually dispensed and may come into contact withwater that is eventually consumed. It is important, therefore, to keepthe exterior of valved cap as clean as possible. The exterior of the cap50 of FIG. 16 is substantially covered by the shrink sleeve 56 c and theremovable label 60 cover. This provides an additional level ofcleanliness that is of value to bottlers and consumers. Thus,particularly for valved caps, which are inserted directly intodispensing machines and which, as a result, may come into contact withwater that is eventually consumed, the additional cleanliness of ashrink sleeve is a valuable improvement.

The closures 40 of FIGS. 14-16 has a valve and a one-time-use (ornon-reattachable) removable label, like the closure shown and discussedin U.S. Pat. No. 5,904,259 (which is incorporated herein by reference).When such closures are used with the shrink sleeve as discussed hereinthe bottler and consumer are afforded a multi-faceted approach to tamperevidency. First the cap cannot be removed from the container withoutdestroying the cap (or pulling the pull tab, not shown in FIGS. 14-16).Secondly, the label which block access to the valve, cannot be removedand replaced because it is free of adhesive. Thirdly, the shrink sleeveprovides an additional level of tamper evidency. Thus, the benefits ofcolor coding and inventory simplification are in addition to the safetyafforded by the use of a tamper evidencing shrink sleeve as describedabove.

Thus, it is seen that an improved tamper resistant bottle cap and neckare provided which satisfy the need for a bottle with an improved tamperresistant seal. The inventions described and claimed herein includes abottle cap with an improved means for connecting and sealing the cap toa bottle, which limits the ability of a person to defeat the sealingaction of the shrink wrap seal on the bottle cap and neck and whichlimits the leakage or spillage from a loose seal during transport.

Although the inventions described and claimed herein have been describedin considerable detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments,one skilled in the art will appreciate that the inventions described andclaimed herein can be practiced by other than the preferred embodiments,which have been presented for purposes of illustration and not oflimitation. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claimsshould not be limited to the description of the preferred embodimentscontained herein.

1. A closure arrangement for a container comprising a bottle cap, abottle neck, and a shrink sleeve the bottle neck comprising an openingat an upper end of the neck; an exterior surface having a at least onecap engaging protrusion; a circumferential transfer ring disposed belowthe cap engaging protrusion, the bottle cap comprising, a circularcover, a skirt depending from the periphery of the cover, the neck andbottle cap being dimensioned to receive and engage said shrink sleeveafter said shrink sleeve is brought into close-fitting contact with saidcap and bottle neck; and said shrink sleeve containing printing and/orcoloring to signify the contents and/or the supply of said container. 2.The closure arrangement of claim 1 wherein said neck is part of a blowmolded bottle made of HDPE.
 3. The closure arrangement of claim 1wherein said neck has first sleeve engaging formations and said cap hassecond sleeve engaging formations, said first and second formationscooperating with said sleeve to limit rotational motion of said capafter said sleeve is shrunk into engagement with said cap and neck. 4.The closure arrangement of claim 3 wherein said first sleeve engagingformations comprise a series of radially inwardly formed indentations onthe outermost periphery of said bumper roll.
 5. The closure arrangementof claim 3 wherein said first sleeve engaging formations comprise aseries of indentations on underside of said bumper roll.
 6. The closurearrangement of claim 3 wherein said first sleeve engaging formationscomprise a series of projections extending outwardly from an outersurface of said bumper roll.
 7. The closure arrangement of claim 1wherein said cap is injection molded without the use of any pigment orcolorant other than white.
 8. A system for managing closure inventory ina bottling facility in which a plurality of different kinds of beveragesare bottled in blow molded containers, said system comprising: aplurality of different shrink sleeve materials, each one of saidmaterials corresponding to a particular kind of beverage, standardundifferentiated closures and blow molded containers being used on allof said plurality of kinds of beverage bottled at said facility, asupply of inventory of said standard closures being maintained at saidfacility, whereby bottles with any of said plurality of different kindsof beverage are bottled in said containers with standardundifferentiated closures, and differentiation of beverages bottled atsaid facility is done by applying particular shrink sleeve material to acontainer corresponding to a particular beverage in said container,wherein particularized shrink sleeves are the primary indicia carried bysaid containers identifying the particular nature of the contents ofsaid containers.
 9. A system in accordance with claim 8 wherein saidplurality of different shrink sleeve materials differ from one anotherin color.
 10. A system in accordance with claim 8 wherein said shrinksleeves are the only indicia differentiating the contents of saidcontainers.
 11. A system in accordance with claim 8 wherein saidcontainers are made of HDPE.
 12. A system in accordance with claim 8wherein each of said standard closures comprises: a bottle cap having acircular cover, a skirt depending from the periphery of the cover, theskirt including an interior surface having radial sleeve engagingundulations for engaging a shrink sleeve applied to said cap whereby theability of said cap to inadvertently rotate relative to a container towhich said cap is applied is restricted.
 13. A system in accordance withclaim 8 wherein said closures are part of a closure arrangement for acontainer comprising: a bottle cap, a bottle neck, and a shrink sleeve,the bottle neck comprising an opening at an upper end of the neck; anexterior surface having a at least one cap engaging protrusion; acircumferential transfer ring disposed below the cap engagingprotrusion; the neck having first radial sleeve engaging undulations;the bottle cap comprising, a circular cover, a skirt depending from theperiphery of the cover, the skirt including an interior surface havingsecond radial sleeve engaging undulations; the first and secondundulations being dimensioned to engage said shrink sleeve and preventloosening of said cap with respect to said neck after said shrink sleeveis brought into close-fitting contact with said cap and bottle neck; andsaid shrink wrap band containing printing and/or coloring to signify thecontents and/or the supply of said container.
 14. A method of bottle capand shrink sleeve distribution wherein a plurality of bottlingfacilities served by a distribution center can package different kindsof beverages using standard bottles and standard caps, said methodcomprising the steps of: keeping a supply of standard bottle cap at adistribution center and at each of a plurality of bottling facilitiesserved by said distribution center; keeping a supply of a plurality ofdifferent shrink sleeve materials, each one of said materialscorresponding to a particular kind of beverage, at said bottlingfacilities at said distribution center and at each of said plurality ofbottling facilities; bottling the desired liquid/beverage at saidbottling facilities; changing a shrink wrap sleeve reel to the desiredshrink sleeve material, corresponding to the desired liquid/beverage tobe bottled; providing a shrink wrap seal over the bottle cap and neck tosealingly engage the contents of the container/bottle, said shrink wrapseal being adapted to receive color or printing; transporting saidbottled beverage to a distribution center; transporting a re-supply ofstandard closures to said bottling facilities on the return trips fromthe distribution center to the bottling facilities.
 15. A closurearrangement for a container comprising a bottle cap, a bottle neck, anda shrink sleeve the bottle neck comprising an opening at an upper end ofthe neck; an exterior surface of the bottle having a at least one capengaging protrusion; the bottle cap comprising, a closed end and an openend, a skirt depending from the periphery of the closed end, the bottlecap being dimensioned to receive and engage said shrink sleeve aftersaid shrink sleeve is brought into close-fitting contact with at least aportion of said cap; and said shrink sleeve containing printing and/orcoloring to signify the contents and/or the supply of said container.16. The closure arrangement of claim 15 wherein said neck is part of ablow molded bottle made of a material selected from the group consistingof HDPE, Polycarbonate and PET.
 17. The closure arrangement of claim 15wherein said cap has a label, and said sleeve, together with said label,substantially cover exterior portions of said cap.
 18. The closurearrangement of claim 15 wherein said container has a neck, and said neckcomprises first shrink sleeve engaging formations and said cap hassecond shrink sleeve engaging formations, said first and secondformations cooperating with said shrink sleeve to limit rotationalmotion of said cap after said sleeve is shrunk into engagement with saidcap and neck.
 19. A closure comprising: a closed end and a skirtextending away from said closed end defining an open end, a shrinksleeve carried by said closure, said shrink sleeve being partiallyshrunk into engagement with a portion of said closure, said shrinksleeve and said skirt defining a gap by which said skirt is at leastpartially spaced inwardly from said sleeve, whereby said skirt mayexpand upon installation of said closure onto a bottle without rupturingsaid shrink sleeve.
 20. A closure in accordance with claim 19 whereinsaid closed end is openable when said closure is inserted into adispenser of liquid contained within a container to which said closureis applied.
 21. A closure in accordance with claim 19 wherein saidclosure is adapted for use on a 5-gallon bottle, and said shrink sleevesubstantially covers the skirt of said closure.
 22. A closure inaccordance with claim 19 wherein said closure has an area of enlargeddiameter forming a protrusion on the exterior of said closure, saidshrink sleeve being only partially shrunk and engaging said protrusion,said shrink sleeve forming a gap between said skirt and said shrinksleeve, whereby completion of shrinking of said shrink sleeve aroundsaid closure is adapted to be completed after said closure is applied toa container.